This invention relates to a cell for placing solid matter in a liquid on a slide glass under a centrifugal force to prepare a specimen for microscopic examination.
For pathological study or diagnosis, for instance, red blood corpuscles to be examined are taken out of the blood of a patient. At this time, the red blood corpuscles are recovered in such a manner that the red blood corpuscles as solid matter in blood are placed separately from white blood corpuscles on a slide glass set in a centrifugal separator.
To this end, a cell for accommodating blood and for holding the slide glass is used. Such a conventional cell is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 170056/1986. The conventional cell has a base plate, a cylindrical container portion connected to the base plate for accommodating blood and a holder for holding the base plate therein as shown in FIG. 4 of the Publication. The hollow space of the cylindrical container portion is connected to an opening provided on the base plate. The holder in the form of a box has a holding spring for holding the base plate. In the holder are placed a slide glass and a packing plate. Further, the base plate is held on the packing plate by the holding spring.
When a liquid is separated into a liquid component and solid matter, the cell is placed in a centrifugal separator. When the centrifugal separator is operated, solid matter separated from a liquid to be processed, accommodated in the cylindrical container portion is attached to the slide glass. The remaining liquid component passes through the packing plate, because of its water permeability, into the holder and drops into the case of the centrifugal separator.
The holder of the conventional cell is made of metal to enable it to be used many times and the base plate and the cylindrical portion are also made so as to be repeatedly used. However, it is troublesome and ineffecitve to clean it after it is used and a sterilizing process is required after each cleaning.